A brain-to-sonar electronic interface to bypass peripheral auditory system in rats

Abstract

Hearing loss is one of the most common neural impairments and is usually due to damage to peripheral structures. The insertion of a specific electronic interface along the auditory pathway, bypassing the area of peripheral damage, can at least partially reactivate the auditory faculty. Herein, a rat brain stimulation technique based on an ultrasound system is presented. The complete system consists of two polyvinylidene-fluoride transducers and an electronic interface, which processes ultrasounds in the air mimicking what happens in the cochlea, simulating action potentials spontaneously generated by the hair cells and then sending them to the brain. The cortical response is closely connected to environmental characteristics carried out by the external stimuli presented to the inferior colliculus, bypassing the sense organ.